The Pennine Cycle way.
350 miles from Etwall to Berwich-on-Tweed.
Links:
<Day 0> Tuesday 21st - Travel day,
<Day 1> Wednesday 22nd - Burton to Fenny Bentley - 16 miles,
<Day 2> Thursday 23rd - Ashbourne to Whaley Bridge - 24 miles,
<Day 3> Friday 24th - Whaley Bridge to Holmfirth - 32 miles,
<Day 4> Saturday 25th - Holmfirth to Hebden Bridge - 26 miles,
<Day 5> Sunday 26th - Hebden Bridge to Settle - 43 mile,
<Day 6> Monday 27th - Settle to Sedbegh - 31 miles,
<Day 7> Tuesday 28th - Sedbergh to Dufton - 31 miles,
<Day 8> Wednesday 29th - Dufton to Haltwhistle - 37 miles,
<Day 9> Thursday 30th - Haltwhistle to West Woodburn - 35 miles,
<Day 10> Friday 31st - West Woodburn to Wooler - 47 miles,
<Day 11> Saturday 1st - Wooler to Berwick - 30 miles,
<Day 12> Sunday 2nd - Travel day.
What were we thinking!
The last week of August saw my Son David, my good friend Keith and myself embark on an adventure. Something we had never tried before.
The Pennine Cycleway or Sustrans NCN Route 68 runs from Etwall, midway between Derby and Burton-Upon-Trent to Berwick-on Tweed. 350 miles of quiet roads, farm tracks, bridleways and old railway beds.
 |
| From 'tinternet |
And hills. Lots of them.
Travelling North through the South Pennines AONB, and the National Parks of the Peak District, Yorkshire Dales, Lake District and Northumberland, before touching Scotland and all the countryside in between, we encountered pain, stunning landscapes and friendly generous people all the way.
Planning was carried out in part using the excellent resources at the Sustrans web site. There was also a very helpful on-line guide including details of cycle shops from 'Cycle.travel' and snippets and advice from various forums and blogs including this particularly entertaining account at 'onesti.co.uk'.
Details on campsites and hostels were principally sourced from
ukcampsite.co.uk and independenthostels.co.uk (who also hold details on the YHA) respectively with additional info from good old Google.
I bought two useful maps from Sustrans, generated a set of annotated OS maps using Quo, and downloaded the Cycle.travel downloadable guide and their GPX file.
Almost every day I sent a quick text to my colleague who wished to keep track of my progress. These took the form of a tongue-in-cheek summery, slightly in the style of a pre-war dispatch from a military expedition to foreign parts.
I've included them here for amusement.
To maintain the troop's morale (there I go again...) spontaneous outbursts of songs were bellowed to the surrounding countryside.
The fact that we could not remember the words and were 'sung' out of tune at full volume and only made cycling and breathing more difficult, just added to the fun.
 |
| Climbed higher than Everest! |
Despite all the prep, all the planning we were quite caught out by so many ways: We didn't train enough, we didn't allow enough time, we learned 'backpacking' navigation techniques were too inefficient, relying on providence to provide meal stops weren't 100% reliable, didn't carry enough nuts and bolts...
My best decision gear wise was to by some virtually indestructible Swalbe Marathons from The Bike Shop in Greenford. Along with some spare brake blocks.
David's best purchase were two 10,000 mAh solar powerbanks, that kept our navigation up and running!
Next time (NEXT TIME!!!) I'd look into a lighter bike than my 18kg cast iron wonder and a dynamo hub for phone/camera recharging. This would enable continuous use of a phone/tablet/sat nav.
For those that care, the gear list is here.
No comments:
Post a Comment